Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue

7 reviews

danajoy's review against another edition

emotional reflective

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage

Moderate: Mental illness, Medical content, Alcohol, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Suicide and Homophobia

kirstenw13's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

So good, so sweet. There were twists, there were turns. There were besties and their woes. A great book about friendship, what love can mean, the publishing industry and abortion access in Ireland in the early 2010s. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abortion, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Homophobia, and Sexual content

Minor: Cursing, Terminal illness, Blood, Alcohol, Homophobia, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Medical content, Drug use, Vomit, and Infertility

bootsmom3's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infertility, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Infidelity, Medical content, Misogyny, Abortion, Sexual content, Cursing, and Alcohol

Moderate: Blood, Classism, Cancer, and Vomit

Minor: Death, Death of parent, Body shaming, and Homophobia

elderwoodreads's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This book is fully and completely worth the hype. Rachel as a character really resonated with me and I loved her narration. The only criticism I have is

the cheap "twist" of Carey being the husband. I wish that had been upfront because it makes a lot of the early book narration awkward. The journey of them getting together would have still been fully worth it without a looming "husband" figure

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, and Infidelity

Moderate: Drug use, Infertility, Sexual content, and Abortion

Minor: Homophobia, Cancer, Vomit, Death of parent, and Medical content

annoyedhumanoid's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

the bridge of "You're On Your Own, Kid" by Taylor Swift, excerpted here for your reading pleasure:

The jokes weren't funny, I took the money
My friends from home don't know what to say
I looked around in a blood-soaked gown
And I saw something they can't take away
'Cause there were pages turned with the bridges burned
Everything you lose is a step you take
So make the friendship bracelets, take the moment and taste it
You've got no reason to be afraid
[…]
You're on your own, kid
You always have been

i'm not sure if i didn't like the ending or if i just didn't want it to end.

i'm also conflicted on the narrative structure of being told through memory with reflections and commentary peppered in. it obviously allows for deeper, more mature insight, as well as effective foreshadowing, but oftentimes it was along the lines of "i was so stupid then" which like, show don't tell, and we're definitely sufficiently shown. which i don't think is a bad thing! but i know for others it is, and so this setup feels like a concession to the crowd that can't stand, for example, Sally Rooney novels because her twenty-something young women characters are annoying or self-involved or clueless (for example, from a review of Conversations with Friends: "One of the most pretentious and self absorbed gen-z/millenial 'I am a suffering artist who is better than anyone else' main characters. Something about the damaged female writer character that is really trying my patience these days"). i am a strong advocate for allowing women characters to be annoying and self-involved and clueless. that's not to say you have to enjoy reading about them, but i don't like media catered to people who believe otherwise; just count them out of your intended audience. so the narration winds up feeling to me like a lampshading cop-out.

big thought out of the way, yeah i loved this, a truly funny in-depth character study showing significant growth and change. i fell in love with Rachel and James (Devlin; Carey is fine). storygraph was spot-on with this recommendation, thanks babe <3

miscellaneous: i was happy to see Rachel become friends with other women by the end. being surrounded almost exclusively by men for that long cannot be good for one's mental health

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Abortion, Alcohol, Cursing, Grief, Blood, Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Infertility, Cancer, Chronic illness, Classism, Death of parent, Drug use, Gaslighting, Medical content, Mental illness, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, and Bullying

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Death, Excrement, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual harassment, Eating disorder, Body shaming, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, and Vomit

isabezza's review

emotional tense medium-paced

5.0

Wow. This story was written so well I am shocked it is not an autobiography. Every sensation, every scene, felt so real. James and Rachel were such troubled and wonderful protagonists, relatable to any reader in their 20s. This book made me gasp without being a ridiculous or plot-driven story. It was emotive and deeply embedded in Irish political history. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Pregnancy, Medical content, Miscarriage, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, and Infertility

marywahlmeierbracciano's review against another edition

challenging funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The Rachel Incident.  I rolled my eyes at the title at first, but once I’d read the climactic scene, it suddenly became a perfect fit.  This is the hilarious and heartfelt story of platonic soulmates, and the writing is so fast-paced and witty that I never wanted to put it down.  With undeniable humor leading the way, O’Donoghue joins the intricate character relationships of Sally Rooney with the harsh realities of late aughts/early 2010s Ireland—recession, barriers to reproductive care, homophobia.  This book is so good it makes me want to squeal and do a little dance and also read everything else Caroline O’Donoghue has written.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Miscarriage, Alcohol, and Medical content

Moderate: Homophobia, Drug use, Sexual content, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abortion, Infertility, Terminal illness, and Grief

Minor: Chronic illness and Vomit